Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser

 My thoughts

I received an arc for this book and the audio via NetGalley, St Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio. It was also a BOTM choice for me. It's so good. A retelling of Cinderella from the Stepmother's POV... 

Etheldreda married the man she fell in love with and had two daughters, Rosamund and Matilda. Her husband died and her father in law was going to give her small girls to brothers as wives. They were still young children. Ethel married another man to protect her girls. That is when she became the "stepmother" to Elin. Her second husband died and she was left to raise the three girls. Everything her second husband had was left to his child for when she married. 

Ethel was a good mother. She tried her best with Elin. Elin had different ideas as to how to get by. She quoted a book that seemed to always be with her. A book teaching her how to be a lady. She was not at all like the Cinderella that we all knew and felt sorry for. She was a bit lazy. Rosie and Matilda did their share of work. Both were good at doing things. 

When there was to be a ball to find the Prince a wife Ethel of course found a way to get all three girls invited. They had to make their dresses and do their own work to get ready and Ethel's two girls did fine. Elin however didn't do good at all. But as you know Elin is the one the Prince would choose.

The Prince had secrets. Not good secrets. He was definitely not the Prince I grew up knowing about. But he was to be married to Elin and that was all that matter. 

This book gives you a whole other take on the story and family. I loved Ethel. I thought she was very resourceful and knew how to get things done. I felt for her a lot of times and really hoped she would be able to do what she needed to do. I liked the stepsisters too for the most part. Elin however had to grow on me. She came across as a spoiled brat. Always seeming to faint at just the right time. And the Prince. He was a whole other set of problems... When things got intense though Elin did come through. She helped in a way that I could hardly believe. Ultimately she did learn how to persevere. 

This book was a fun read but also serious. It was a page turner and so good. I highly recommend you read it. There are not an abundance of characters but enough. The story being from the "Stepmother;s" POV was fantastic. Very well done. I'll be looking for more by this author in the future. 

The narrator did a wonderful job. She did each character perfectly and kept the story moving at a great pace. 

Five stars  

About

A breathtaking reimagining of Cinderella, as told through the eyes of its iconic "evil" stepmother, revealing a propulsive love story about the lengths a mother will go to for her children

A widow twice-over, Etheldreda is now saddled with the care of her two children, a priggish stepdaughter, and a razor-taloned peregrine falcon. Her entire life has become a ruse, just like the manor hall they live grand and ornate on the exterior, but crumbling, brick by brick, inside. Fierce in the face of her misfortune, Ethel clings to her family’s respectability, the lifeboat that will float her daughters straight into the secure banks of marriage.

When a royal ball offers the chance to secure the future she desperately desires, Etheldreda must risk her secrets, pride, and limited resources in pursuit of an invitation for her daughters—only to see her hopes fulfilled by the wrong one. As an engagement to the heir of the kingdom unfolds with unnerving speed, she discovers a sordid secret hidden in the depths of the royal family, forcing her to choose between the security she’s sought for years and the wellbeing of the feckless stepdaughter who has rebuffed her at every turn.

As if Bridgerton met Circe, and exhilarating to its core, Lady Tremaine reimagines the myth of the evil stepmother at the heart of the world’s most famous fairytale. It is a battle cry for a mother’s love for her daughters, and a celebration of women everywhere who make their own fortunes.

I Came Back For You by Kate White

 My thoughts

I really enjoyed this book/audio. It was an arc from NetGalley and Brillance Audio. Narrated by Sarah Naughton. It was very well done. Held my attention and she did a great job of doing each character. I love when a narrator can do this. It makes the story flow so much better. 

When Bree's ex husband comes to her home out of the blue she is somewhat dismayed. Having no idea what he could possibly want. She hasn't spoken to him since moving so far away. But Logan brings some very shocking news. 

After the murder of their daughter Bree and Logan thought the murder was paying for what he did. Then Logan finds that this may not be true. There may have been another murderer. But how could anyone else know what happened to the other women. To do things almost exactly the same way. To murder Melanie and why. What would be the motive.

This book caught me and would not let go. I throughly enjoyed listening to it. All the way from start to finish. I had a big guess. I was totally convinced that I knew who the killer was. I was so wrong. I was way off. I didn't see it coming.

The author wrote a great edge of your seat thriller with enough mystery to keep me guessing. Enough description to make me feel I was there. By the lake. In the woods. At the Inn. At the crime scene later in the story. On that desolate lonely road. I enjoyed this book so much. 

I loved how the love story played out too. Though I don't think I would have been so giving to Logan. I adored Bree's new partner Bas. He was perfect for her. And so understanding. They were perfect for each other. I just hope they stay that way. 

Thank you NetGalley and Brillance Audio for the ARC. 

4.75 stars...

About

A mother begins to challenge everything she’s been told about her daughter’s murder in a shocking novel of suspense by a New York Times bestselling author.

Ten years after her daughter, Melanie, was murdered, Bree Winter is finally moving on with a new love, a new home, and a new beginning. Then a deathbed confession from the convicted killer throws Bree’s life into a tailspin all over again. He readily confesses to murdering four girls. But not Melanie.

At first, Bree and her ex-husband don’t buy a word of it. Until inconsistencies about the crime emerge. So does the dreadful feeling that the monster who shattered Bree’s family isn’t lying. The only way she can get to the truth is to power through the trauma and return to the town in upstate New York where Melanie’s life came to a brutal end.

Bree will do anything to find justice for her daughter and finish this nightmare forever. Instead, it’s just beginning. Not only could the real killer still be in their midst, but as Bree begins to dig through Melanie’s past, what she discovers calls into question everything she has believed—about the crime and about Melanie herself.

The Girls Before by Kate Alice Marshall

 

My thoughts

I received an audio from Macmillan via NetGalley for this book. Karissa Vacker is the narrator and did a fabulous job with this book. She kept the characters straight and the book moving at a great pace. 

An edge of your seat story in almost all parts. I figured ou who did what and who is who. I did figure out who one character was. That was the only part I found unbelievable but still loved the book/audio. 

Imagine being in a bunker underground in total blackness. The only light coming when someone comes to bring you food. Or water. Or unimaginable abuse. Imagine what it would feel like if you stopped seeing the light. Almost out of food. Almost out of water. Chained to a wall. What would you do? Knowing there were other girls before you that didn't make it. Names carved on wood. Some advice to help you carved in wood. No way to get out. Until someone does open that door. 

Audrey is a search and rescue expert. She lost her best friend many years ago and won't let go of the search for her. Audrey goes to great lengths to help find missing people. Audrey has a dod named Barry that I fell in love with. He's the best. He's also trained to find people. Both alive and dead people. One day as they are hiking Barry goes nuts and leads Audrey to a door. A door to a bunker.

This was a fast paced story. It kept my attention all the way through. I truly didn't want to put it down. It's one you can easily read in a day. It starts out good and ends up good. 

Thank you NetGalley, St Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for this ARC. 

4.75 stars... 

About

A search & rescue expert. A kidnapped woman. The lost girls who haunt them both.

"Veteran narrator [Karissa] Vacker performs the novel skillfully.... Her soothing voice, clarity, and intonation draw the listener into the story, while her convincing performance of Theo will hold their attention until the very last syllable." —Booklist on A Killing Cold (Starred Review)

There is a girl in a basement.
The door has stopped opening.
The light is gone.

Stranger is trapped in the dark, with only her imagination and the scribbles on the wall left by long-dead girls to keep her company. Nearly out of food and water, she makes one last attempt to escape. But if the door opens at last, will it mean salvation, or only the beginning of her fight to survive?

Audrey is a search and rescue expert who never stopped looking for her ex-best friend, Janie, who disappeared when they were teenagers. Janie used to love the local legend of a forest witch who saves girls from bad men, but Audrey knows now that for every one saved, there’s always another one lost. When she stumbles upon evidence in the forest that a teenage runaway might have actually been kidnapped from land belonging to the town’s most prominent family, she will have to dig through decades of secrets to reveal the biggest one of what happened to the girls before.

Kate Alice Marshall, bestselling author of What Lies in the Woods, No One Can Know, and A Killing Cold, is back with the thrilling new novel Ashley Winstead calls, "magnetic, shocking, heartbreaking, and unputdownable."

"Narrator Karissa Vacker, with scores of audiobooks under her belt, provides a pitch-perfect performance... [her] voice is a solid touchstone guiding listeners through shocks and twists." —Booklist on What Lies in the Woods

A Good Animal by Sara Maurer

 

My thoughts

It's hard to believe this is a debut. It is so beautiful and heartfelt. A story that will capture your heart.

Do you remember what first love felt like? Was it good? Was it heartfelt? Hopeful? Did you end up with that first love? Or was it a bad experience? Sad? Hurtful? This story is so full of love and hope. Hope for a future. A first love that is told from the young man's point of view. From his feelings. His heart. And what a story it is. 

Everett met Mary during the summer before their senior year in high school. Mary had just moved to  Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan and couldn't wait to leave. She only had one year left and she could do whatever she wanted. She had plans to move to California and be an artist. 

Everett was a farm boy. A young man who loved everything about being a sheep farmer. He had big plans too. To buy his own sheep and make his life as a farmer. Then he met Mary. He feel hard and fast. They were young and threw caution to the wind. It was such a pure and sweet time for them. 

Mary told Everett from the very start that she was not staying. She told him about her plans and she meant every word. But Everett truly thought he was in love. And possibly he was. Sometimes first loves are the strongest. The deepest. The most intense. But something went wrong. Something unexpected. 

This book is truly beautifully written. It's just one that will keep you turning the pages. I cried so much reading this book. I did laugh a few times too but mostly it brought tears to my eyes. Not just from the love between a boy and a girl but from what happens to sheep. Things I didn't know that happened when you show animals. 

I learned a few things reading this book. All about sheep, but still I did learn some things. This author knows sheep and she knows what that first love feels like. From a boys POV at that. 

This book was a quick read for me. 

I received an audio arc also and have to say that the narrator, Michael Crouch, did a fantastic job of making this book flow just right. Of bringing each character to life. Of giving it the feeling it needed. 

Thank you NetGalley, St Martin's Press, and Macmillan audio, for the arc. Also it was my BOTM last month. 

4.75 stars... 

About

A heart-wrenching coming-of-age debut novel by a stunning new voice in fiction, for readers of Barbara Kingsolver and Ann Patchett.

In the farm country outside Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan—a border town where life moves slow and dreams run fast—most kids want out. Not Everett Lindt. He’s set on staying put, rebuilding his family’s sheep farm, and carving a future from the land he loves.

Then he meets Mary, a new girl in town with restless energy and bigger plans. When their relationship reaches a crossroads, Everett sees a life together; Mary, however, is desperate to find a way out. Together, they make an impulsive choice—one that will change everything.

Tense, lyrical, and deeply felt, Sara Maurer's unforgettable debut breathtakingly captures the ache of first love, the beauty and brutality of rural life, and how one decision can echo through generations and shape who we become.

Watching Over Her by Jean Baptiste Andrea

 My thoughts

This review is a bit harder to write than my usual reads. This book absolutely stole my heart. It touched me in a way that no other book ever has. It's beautifully written and heartbreaking, while at the same time it will give so much more. I laughed, cried, cringed. All the feels and maybe some we never expect. 

I went into this book completely without knowing the first thing about it other than I loved the title and cover. What I got was a lesson in love. Forgiveness. Peace. So much that I honestly can't begin to say it all.

This is told by a very old gentleman who is dying. He's living, well dying, in an Italian Monastery. He's lived there for many years. Before that he was a very poor man. Born a dwarf and abandoned as a young boy by his mother. Yes she did abandon him. She went to find money and it took twenty years for her to finally come back to him. That was not a good choice. But for him maybe it was. 

Michelangelo or Mimo as he liked to be called was a dwarf. He was bullied horribly. He was loved unconditionally. He was lonely even when around others. At times. He worked hard and also drank away his money. But only after he had been let down by the one woman he truly loved. 

Viola. Viola was the daughter of a very rich family. Also a very powerful family. She never wanted to get married and have a family. She wanted to fly. To become a pilot. But her father had different ideas. A female could not do this. She was expected to marry and make their family stronger.

Mimo and Viola met as children in a cemetery of all places. They became fast friends. They were the same age and just hit it off. As they got older Viola grew but Mimo stayed at a little over four feet tall. Viola didn't seem to care at all. Mimo was her friend and that was all that matter. 

Their's is a story to be heard. Though they are seperated many times they are also there for each other. When a tragedy hits it makes Viola see things differently. For some crazy reason she no longer wants to see or hear from Mimo. Mimo goes and works hard. He makes so much money that he doesn't have to worry. But he also drinks to much. 

This book is so beautifully written. It describes the areas and the people so well. The love that Mimo feels for Viola. The anger they both have at times. The fall that makes it impossible for Viola to ever do what she wanted. The hurt. All the emotion you'll feel reading this book. It's definitely one, or the, most beautiful stories I have ever read. 

I started this book and almost didn't keep reading. I still have no idea why. The beginning make me scratch my head. Then it just clicked. This book took my breath away. It's so worth reading.

Thank you NetGalley, Simon & Schuster for this ARC.  

Five stars 

About

In an Italian monastery, a sculptor named Mimo lays on his deathbed. For decades, he has lived among the monks who watch over his masterpiece, an arresting statue that haunts all who see it.

During his final hours, he reveals his life his impoverished childhood, brutal apprenticeship, and most importantly, his meeting with Viola Orsini, the only daughter of a powerful and dangerous aristocratic family. A chance meeting, Mimo and Viola are instantly drawn to one another, viewing themselves as outsiders—Mimo for his dwarfism, and Viola for her ability to remember everything she has ever read or experienced. Together, they traverse the unrest of the 20th century, from the rise of fascism to the violence of the world wars. While Mimo strives to become a celebrated artist, Viola chases her own dreams of becoming an emancipated woman. Over the decades, they will lose and find each other time and again, but never will they give up on the love they share.

Immersive, moving, and at times hilarious, Watching Over Her is a dynamic love story and timely exploration of the power of creativity during the rise of fascism.

Good Intentions by Marisa Walz

 

My thoughts

This was a pretty good debut. I hated how often the main character, Cady, said Dana. Dana was her sister's name. Her twin sister. Dana was killed in an auto accident. Dana was also ten weeks pregnant. It was horrible and I do understand where Cady was coming from as she navigated her life without her sister. Though I do believe she should have shown the man who hit her sister's car a little sympathy. Especially after reading the ending. 

It took me the whole book to understand Cady's obsession with Morgan. Seemed like Cady had a great life. With the exception of losing her twin she did have it all. She ran her own event planning business and was doing extremely well. She was married to the love of her life. She had not been able to have a baby and had miscarried not that long ago. But she could try again. She could learn to stop lying. I hated that about her. She was a horrible lying person. She convinced herself it was all for whoever's good. Whoever she was doing wrong at the time. The way she treated her husband was unexceptable. Maybe I should give her a little slack but good grief she was so busy stalking and sticking her nose in other people's business she just didn't have time to keep her business afloat. Her great employees were doing so much for her. But did she appreciate them? And always accusing Matt of infidelity. The poor man was so worried about her he didn't know what was happening. Until he did...

This book was pretty well written. I could picture Cady as she sat in her car. As she convinced a group of her losses. As she yelled to Matt. She should have put her life first. Her marriage that is. But the whole book is about the crazy things she is doing. It didn't all start after losing her twin either. That was why I didn't find it so believable that she just flipped after that accident. She was always sort of weak and possessive. Always a kind of control freak. I would have felt bad for Cady but when she did what she did and I read about it I just wanted to smack her. Wake up. See what you have. Dana would have wanted her to hold on to her life and do the right thing.

Turn back around and take responsibility.....

Great narration. The narrator kept the story flowing great. Did pretty good with each character. 

Thank you St Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the ARCs. 

4 stars 

About

A deft and immersive psychological suspense debut about a luxury party planner who becomes obsessed with a woman she encounters in a hospital waiting room.

Cady has worked hard to have a good life. She has a thriving luxury event-planning business, the man she’s loved since she was seventeen, and a social calendar she can barely keep up with. She also has Dana, her identical twin, her beyond best friend, her most trusted confidante. When Cady gets a call that Dana has been in a serious accident and arrives moments too late to say goodbye, her world falls apart.

But to Cady’s family’s growing concern and confusion, it’s not Dana’s death that consumes her. It’s Morgan, a grieving mother Cady encountered in the hospital waiting room, the day her sister died. It can’t be a coincidence, that they both experienced tragedy at the same moment, in the same place—Cady doesn't believe in coincidences. Instead, she is convinced that she must help this stranger overcome her tragedy, in order to come to terms with her own.

Or...is there more to it? Is it possible that Cady wants something else from Morgan? Something she can’t even admit to herself?

Slyly twisted and deeply provocative, Good Intentions captures the moral ambiguity that can arise in the face of impossible choices. Like the aftermath of a car accident—and against your better judgment—you won't be able to look away.

An Unconventional Lady by Sarah E. Ladd

 

My thoughts

A first for me by this author. I enjoyed it so much and hope to read more of her work.

This is the story of Ella Wilde. Ella lost her mother at the age of ten. Being raised only by her father Ella was well educated and well loved. Ella's mother wanted her to be educated as she was. Ella wanted to prove that her mother did not commit suicide and she wanted to follow in her mother's footsteps in other areas. 

Ella's father became sickly and thought it best for Ella to be married so she would not lose the school for boys that her mother's father started so many years ago. He thought if Ella married a man who could take it over and take care of her things would be ok. Ella had different thoughts about this though and fell in love with a different man. She didn't want to be in a loveless marriage to a much older man. 

This book has a few things going on. Ella's best friend falling in love with a bad man. Of course she didn't know he was bad but Ella had her suspicions. Also a friend from the past comes and turns Ella's world upside down. Well sort of. She falls in love with him. Confides in him. 

There is suspense in this story, love, kidnapping. It's one that will keep you turning the pages to find out what comes next. To see if Ella can find her true love and solve her mother's mysterious death. Helping her best friend who was taken in by a house guest of the Wilde's. Just being there for her. Phoebe and Ella have been lifelong friends and let a man come between them. The faces of love.

This was a fun read that taught me about phrenology. A subject I had not heard about. It was the main setting for this story. The Phrenology is the theory that a person's traits and intellectual abilities can be found by learning the shape and size of their skull. How ridiculous is that? But at this time it was believed to be true. 

A very enjoyable read/listen. This is a clean romance story. At times it was intense. Other times it was a bit romantic. A well written regency era story.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson Fiction, Thomas Nelson and Zondervan Fiction Audio for the ARCs. Also thank you to Uplit Reads for choosing me for this.

4.5 stars 

About

One woman works to expose a scientific fraud while also finding love in the latest sweet Regency romance by Sarah Ladd. Perfect for fans of Julie Klassen, An Unconventional Lady delivers what Publishers Weekly calls Ladd's "pitch-perfect blend of suspense and sweetness" (The Cloverton Charade).

She faces the worst ultimatum possible for a woman--marry a man she detests or lose the future she's always imagined.

Charming and headstrong, Ella Wilde always knew she was different than other women. Thanks to her unorthodox upbringing as the daughter of Keatley Hall School for Young Men's headmaster, Ella has long dreamed of opening a school for girls that would meet the needs of inquisitive, brilliant, unconventional young women just like her--girls who longed for the education exclusively reserved for boys. But there's just one Unless she marries before her father dies, Keatley Hall will pass into the hands of a distant cousin. In that case, Ella will be left destitute, and at this point her only option appears to be an undesirable marriage.

Ella's family had long been proponents of phrenology, the belief that an individual's personality and dispositions were predetermined by the shape of their head. Shortly before her death, however, Ella's mother's views on phrenology changed, and she endeavored to expose phrenology as nothing more than a fraudulent parlor trick. Consequently, she earned the wrath of phrenologist community, who called her "unstable," "bizarre," even "dangerous"--and branded her daughter the same.

Now, renowned phrenologist Thomas Bauer is about to arrive at Keatley Hall to speak at the Natural Philosophers' Society gathering, and Ella embraces the opportunity to clear her mother's name--and her own--once and for all. And her partner in crime? None other than her childhood friend Gabriel Rowe, who's grown into an ambitious, handsome London solicitor.

Gabriel has his own scores to settle, and when he learns that Thomas Bauer is visiting Keatley Hall, he jumps at the chance to prove himself and right past wrongs. As he is drawn deeper into the unusual happenings, it's clear that he and Ella must work together if they want to unmask the truth. Over time, Gabriel's attraction to Ella's beauty and wit becomes impossible to ignore, and as the lines between professionalism and passion blur, they both must decide what they're willing to risk for happiness.

Dawn of the North by Demi Winters

 

My thoughts

Book three of the Ashen Series and boy is it good. Another jaw dropping book. And with three love stories what more do you need. There is of course the edge of your seat battle. It also has some parts to make you laugh. And others to make you shed tears. Some happy tears and some not so happy tears. 

You don't mess with a sister. You better watch your back if you do. You should know that sisters will die for each other. Fight to the end. Even ones who have been apart most of their lives. Sisters are a whole other force of nature...

In this book you get to know more about Silla and Rey. Saga and Kass. Hekla and Eyvind. 

Three women and three men. They all battle demon's of their own but together are a force to be reckoned with. Love knows not bounds. Though Hekla swears she will never marry again she does have strong feelings for Eyvind. 

You'll read about flying horses and a whole colony of female warriors. A squirrel who only wants to free his mistress and needs help. The undead and how to stop them hopefully. There is a lot going on in this series.

This book was fun and very intense. Parts had me holding my breath and others made tears come to my eyes. It's a full on fantasy, romantasy, romance, fiction story that will keep you wanting more. 

This whole series has been a joy. There is more coming too. More battles it seems. 

The Volsik sisters still have more to come. 

Thank you Ballantine/Delacorte Press for this ARC.

About

A new age begins in the Kingdom of Íseldur in this sizzling third installment of the Viking-inspired Ashen romantasy the series.

The lost Volsik heir has finally returned to the people of Íseldur, and even with the warrior who’s captured her heart standing by her side, Silla’s task is monumental. She must earn the loyalty of the northern jarls to drive Ivar Ironheart from the throne and restore peace in the kingdom. But the secret she vigilantly guards threatens to ruin all her plans: A shard of a god lives in her mind, twisting her thoughts and deeds to His will.

Meanwhile, held captive on the mysterious isle of Zagadka, Saga Volsik fights to return to her sister in Íseldur. But when King Ivar sets his sights on the Zagadkians, she’s forced to make an impossible choice: fight for the man who stole her—and is now hell-bent on marrying her—or let the innocent people of his kingdom die.

As a poisonous mist threatens the realm, the sisters will delve into the unknowns of their magic to battle against evil. Return to the land of ice and fire, where a god awakens, a queen finds her power, and sisters must unite against the darkness threatening their realm.

Women Of A Promiscuous Nature by Donna Everhart

 

My thoughts

Another winner from Donna Everhart. This one is a heartstopping, heartbreaking, historical about how females were treated when the government decided they were causing servicemen to catch STDs. Not the men being treating any such way, just the females. Even in cases of rape and incest. All those innocent men.... Right!!

In this story you meet several females from various ages. Each placed in a detention center for being promiscuous. Or possibly being promiscuous. They all seemed to have STDs even if they had not done anything of a sexual nature. They were just taken and placed in a place where they were treated lower than the lowest. Some even being sterilized without consent. Sometimes it was a spouse who put them there. I guess they just weren't cooperating enough. Not doing exactly what they were told by their husbands. 

Stella was a child. A fifteen year old who did nothing wrong. Her father impregnated her. Forced her to do what he wanted. She was a very poor girl. Her mother was a basket case who was not there for her. Her dad was the lowest excuse ever. 

Ruth was a single woman who was minding her own business. Walking to work. When a cop approached her. He forced her to go with him to a doctor who said she had a STD and had to be taken away. To protect the service men. She was only twenty four. She was just a single woman who had not done anything wrong. 

There are several females in the Colony. You'll meet a few and hear parts of their stories. The main ones though are Stella and Ruth. And some of the staff. 

Dorothy Baker came to work at the Colony after losing her job at another home that had been set on fire. She was a hard hearted woman. She tended to blame all women for what her ex-husband did. She caught him in their bed with another woman. She was the type to blame women instead of standing by them and fighting for women. I didn't like her at all. Even after hearing her entire story I did not like her. The only thing she did that was possibly kind was being kind of nice to Stella.

This author did a wonderful job of making me feel the pain these females went through. She did great research and put her heart into this story. You can feel the pain of these young women. How hard they tried and what they felt at their weakest periods. The isolation they felt when put in rooms for extended lengths of time to think about what they did. All the emotions are so raw and realistic. It hurt to read this book. It's heartbreaking. 

To think that this actually happened is beyond comprehension. More than my mind can take. It can happen again too. Never think it can't. 

Well written. Realistic. Real. Heartfelt. Heartbreaking. Sad. There is so much going on. So much emotion. 

Thank you Kensington Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC. 

About

The day Ruth Foster’s life changes begins the same way as many others—with a walk through her North Carolina hometown toward the diner where she works. But on this day, Ruth is stopped by the local sheriff, who insists that she accompany him to a health clinic. Women like Ruth—young, unmarried, living alone—must undergo testing in order to preserve decency and prevent the spread of sexual disease.

Though Ruth has never shared more than a chaste kiss with a man, by day’s end she is one of dozens of women held at the State Industrial Farm Colony for Women. Some, like 15-year-old Stella Temple, are brought in at their family’s request. For Stella, even the Colony’s hardships seem like a respite from her nightmarish home life.

Superintendent Dorothy Baker, convinced that she’s transforming degenerate souls into upstanding members of society, oversees the women’s medical treatment and “training” until they’re deemed ready for parole. Sooner or later, everyone at the Colony learns to abide by Mrs. Baker’s rule book or face the consequences—solitary confinement, grueling work assignments, and worse.

But some refuse to be cowed. Against Mrs. Baker’s dogged efforts and the punishing weight of authority, Ruth and other inmates find ways to fight back, resolved to regain their freedom at any cost . . .

Such A Clever Girl by Darby Kane

 

My thoughts

This was a confusing book. The problem being to many characters. I can usually keep up with them with no problem but not this time. They didn't connect like I hoped they would. They didn't even seem to like one another. They needed each other at times but didn't seem like friends. 

Talk about family drama. This story is filled with it. Murder, intrigue, affairs, hookups, suspicion on an epic level. The book has all of that. But to me it lacked emotion. I read it and never felt the usual emotions that I get from a good thriller. I figured out part of it and knew part of it. I mean get real I knew she was guilty. Not a big surprise to me. Though it was a good ending. It had that. A good ending is always useful and can make or break a book. It definitely helped.

I don't need to give a synopsis since there is one already but you will get to know these characters and how they were involved in the disappearance of a family. A whole family. All four of them. Then the father of the man who disappeared dies and it's a full on investigation of everything and everyone. Well almost. The reading of the will unveils a lot. A whole lot of secrets. 

I didn't like any of these characters. Not one. I didn't find any of them believable except maybe Aubrey and no one even liked her. She was one of those you don't like but like to hate. I didn't really hate her though. She was abused by an older man. An older married man. Good grief he should be horsewhipped. Or maybe he can run for president and win...

Thank you William Morrow and NetGalley for this arc.

3 stars 

About

Darby Kane, author of the #1 international bestseller Pretty Little Wife, returns with a gripping domestic thriller in which a family goes missing and a long-buried family mystery resurfaces.

Fifteen years ago, the Tanner family vanished without a trace, leaving behind a chilling half-eaten meals, a bloodstain by the door, and a smoldering fire consuming their business across town.

The once-vibrant home stands untouched, a haunting relic of the past. As rumors fade into local folklore, the mystery of their disappearance seems destined to remain unsolved—until Aubrey Tanner returns.

Now a hardened thirty-year-old, Aubrey arrives in town with secrets etched in her silence. Why did she come back? Was she a victim of the night that changed everything, or does she hold the truth of what happened to her family? The town is rife with theories, but three women share a dangerous they know more than they’ve ever confessed.

As the past resurfaces, old alliances fray. A teacher, a café owner, and a psychologist are drawn together by memories they’d rather forget. Each holds a piece of the puzzle—and a dark secret of their own. When a new disappearance sends shock waves through the town, blackmail begins, and the stakes climb higher.

In a race against time, these women must confront the truth or risk becoming the next victims of a past they cannot escape. With tension rising and danger lurking, one thing is someone is destined to kill again.

What Tomorrow Will Be by Julianne MaClean

 

My thoughts

This is a very touching story. A story of love and loss. Of new beginnings and possible endings. Of marriage with all it's ups and downs. Children. The hardships of being a single mother while married to the man you thought loved you above all else. A story of so much hope. 

When Sienna was nineteen years old she thought she had it all. The love of her life. A wonderful life. Parents who loved her. A best friend. Then she fell....

Sienna survived that fall in many ways. But in one way she lost everything. You get to follow her life after the fall. Meet her husband and children. See what her life was all about. How it turned out. All the ups and downs of Sienna's life. Then she falls again...

This book was very good. A very emotional one. This author obviously has strong religious feelings. It's obvious as you follow what happened to Sienna and Jacob. You'll meet Jacob's sister Becky who is also Sienna's best friend. And then there is Nate, Amanda, and Connor. Each of these characters play such a huge role in this book. All are very likable. I adored Jacob but fell hard for Nate until Nate let Sienna down. Then I got angry at him and I got angry at her too. She literally tells him to go. Go to the restaurant.  That place was part of the reason they got where they were. And she said go. 

Amanda was Sienna's oldest child. She was actually very smart. At times beyond her years smart. I thought she handled herself so well in the hospital. And in life. I'm not so sure many sixteen years olds are that reseilant these days. 

And don't forget the dogs. They play a fairly big part in this book. And each sounds adorable. Just as a pup should...

This book was well written and very heartbreaking while at the same time heartwarming. There was one scene that I found to be quite silly but that is me. I don't believe any surgeon would talk to children with the medical terms the one in this story did. It would just blow their young minds...

I listened to the audio and it was pretty good. Kept great pace and did keep my interest.

Thank you Lake Union Publishers and Brillance Audio for the ARC. 

4 stars 

About

Some loves never die. But only one will shape her future…

At nineteen, Sienna MacKay believed she had it all—a promising career ahead of her and a young love destined to last forever. But a tragic accident shatters that idyllic existence, leaving her with a heartbreaking loss.

Years later, Sienna has rebuilt her life. She’s a successful designer, a devoted mother, and a woman who has dared to love again—with Nate, a passionate, rising-star chef. But as Nate drifts further into ambition, cracks surface in their once-bright marriage. A stormy confrontation ends in disaster, and Sienna becomes caught between two worlds—her near-perfect past and her more complicated present—where she must ask What is the price of true love…and is she willing to pay?

Set on the majestic, rugged coastline of Nova Scotia, What Tomorrow Will Be is a magical, emotional novel about first love, second chances, and finding the courage to stay…or the will to go.

Gone Before Goodbye by Harlan Coben & Reese Witherspoon

 

My thoughts

I absolutely loved this book. I listened to the audio and the cast did such a great job. Reese Witherspoon was the voice of Maggie. Maggie was the main character.

The authors really brought to life how humanity should work. The hearts of doctors working in countries where so many are hurt. During wartime and after. Three friends , Maggie, her husband Marc and friend Trace. One betrayed the other two in a horrible way.

This book took me from my living room to New York. To Russia then Dubai. To France. It kept me on edge through a lot of it. Hoping for something through other parts. And finally back to the US where it all started.

A lot of good characters and enough bad ones to keep me wanting to see justice.

I think my favorite character had to be Porkchop. Yep that was what he was called. Porkchop was Marc’s dad and Maggie’s father in law. He was quite the person.

I liked how they used AI in this story to help Maggie. I liked almost everything about this book. It was my first Harlan Coben book. It won’t be my last.

About

Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan ... until it wasn’t.

Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion.

Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is ... Gone Before Goodbye

Wolf Worm by T. Kingfisher

 

My thoughts

WOW!! This book knocked my socks off. I didn't read the synopsis but thought it had to be good. It's T. Kingfisher... I was right of course. 

This review is very hard to write . What can you say about a story that has you cringing about bugs. About an artist who paints these bugs. A man who studies them so intently.... This book will give you so many feelings, including laughter. Yes laughter. It's a horror, thriller, mysterious story that will have you gasping. But it does contain laughter. 

Does it contain a monster. Yes. But not where you think. Does it have a hero. Yes. A couple actually. This book was a fun and very quick read. It has everything you need for a good thriller, horror, story. 

When Sonia Wilson arrives in response to a job she accepted, she has no idea what lays in store for her. Dr Halder studies bugs. He knows everything about bugs. Or he thinks he does anyway. He's the most unpleasant person Sonia as met. His housekeeper/cook are friendly and make her feel welcome. Sonia is to draw and paint the bugs that Dr Halder is writing a book about. She's an illustrator and he expects the pictures to be perfection. He is not a nice man. He doesn't smile. He doesn't seem to like anyone. He just is...

When things take a turn for to the dark side Sonia finds herself a great odds. Does she continue with this job or run. Sonia stayed. 

This was a book about bugs, painting, cruelty, possibly murder. A story about things you truly only read about in books. This author wrote this in such a way that once you start you won't be able to stop. You'll keep turning the pages until the very end. 

It's different from any I've read but still right along with how you would except this author to write. A story that could end all stories. It's good. It's so good. Evil though. Good and evil? Possibly.

The narrator did a wonderful job with this. She brought the cringes to life. The gasps. The howls. The feelings of bugs crawling on your skin. She did a fantastic job. Mary Robinette Kowal, narrator.

Thank you Tor Publishing Group and Macmillan Audio for the ARCs. 

Five stars 

About

Something darker than the devil stalks the North Carolina woods in Wolf Worm, a new gothic masterpiece from New York Times bestselling author T. Kingfisher

“I saw the devil in these woods.”

Sonia Wilson is a talented scientific illustrator—but she is only able to follow her dream because of her father’s reputation as a renowned scientist. Such is the lot in life for a woman in science in 1899. And after his death, she is left without work, prospects, or hope.

So when the reclusive Dr. Halder offers her a position illustrating his vast collection of insects, Sonia jumps at the chance to move to his North Carolina manor house and put her talents to use.

Once there though, she encounters dark happenings in the Carolina woods, and even darker questions come to light, like what happened to her predecessor? Why are animals acting so strangely, and what is behind the peculiar local whispers about “blood thiefs?”

With the aid of the housekeeper and a local healer, Sonia discovers that Halder’s entomological studies have taken him down a twisted road. His ground-breaking discoveries come with a cost—one that Halder is paying with human flesh.

If Sonia can’t find a way to stop the monstrosity, she may be next under the knife.

Save Her Family (Nikki Hunt #11) by Stacy Green

 

My thoughts

This is the eleventh book in the Nikki Hunt series. Each one is tense and emotional. 

In this book you find out who murdered not only Nikki's neighbor but also a few other people in the town. What was the motive. What did each have in common. Someone who refused to be undone. Someone who thought they were above the law and would never be caught. A person who had to have things their way no matter what!!

Nikki Hunt's daughter Lacey witnesses a murder. She sees when the woman is shot and killed. But she does not see who did it. She has no idea why someone would do this. She only wants to help the small girl that is left, along with her infant sister. Lacey is terrified but determined. She takes the child inside and locks the door. Then she hears the footsteps on the porch.

This book takes you on a wild ride. Through a few murders. A fire that caused the death of two and through Nikki's determination to solve the case. 

I did figure out who the killer was. It was just obvious to me. It didn't take away from the story though. It just kept me reading to see if I was right. To find out why. To see if this person would try to harm Nikki's child. Of course Nikki solves this one as she did every other one. 

This was a good read that kept me turning the pages. Kept me guessing until it just finally hit me who was who and why they did this heinous crime. What drives a person to kill. What makes a person a cold stone murder???

Thank you Bookouture for this ARC.

4.75 stars 

About

The girl’s heart races as she edges towards the bright yellow farmhouse where children’s toys lie carelessly in the overgrown grass. The air is too still. On the front porch, a woman takes her last breath and crumples to the ground…

Special Agent Nikki Hunt feels her chest tighten as she looks down at the body sprawled beside the lilac bushes. This morning, her ten-year-old daughter Lacey witnessed the murder of local mother Elle Harper. Out riding her bike, Lacey saw the killer escape from the house and rushed inside to protect Elle’s daughters Maisy and Maya.

Nikki promises Lacey she’ll do whatever it takes to help the poor innocent girls who now sit in her house clutching their teddies. But before she has a chance to return them to the safety of their stepfather Tim, he’s reported missing. Local gossip suggests that fights between Elle and Tim had been spilling out of the farmhouse, and Nikki soon wonders if Maisy and Maya were ever safe in their own home.

But just as Nikki zones in on her suspect, she realizes she’s too late. A body is pulled from the river, and Nikki’s heart shatters as Tim is pronounced dead. Nikki’s gut tells her that someone is targeting the whole family. But with this killer stalking her in the shadows, what sacrifices will she have to make to save them, and keep her promise to her daughter?

A mind-blowingly brilliant thriller from USA Today bestseller Stacy Green. Fans of Lisa Regan, Mary Burton and Kendra Elliot will be up all night flipping the pages until the final, unputdownable twist.